Thinking of getting a cavalier king charles

[StirlingSilver83]

Slightly off topic, but for dog owners in general, how do you handle going away for the weekend, being out all day, taking week long vacations, etc? What is your solution to dog sitting? This concerns me because I don't want to be tied down for 10 years in the house if we have a dog.

When we go away my mom stays behind and takes care of our dogs. We only go away for 1 week every year. As for during the day I am a stay at home mom so I am at home with my dogs pretty much all day. What does make me nervous is when we go away my mom does have a full time job so there is no one home with the dogs during the day. It upsets me a bit bc they are use to someone being there everyday with them practically all day and then they are by themselves all day when we are on vacation. I tell my mom to leave the TV on for them though so they don't get lonely while she's at work.

 

[mefordis]

Thank you so much for your responses. A lot of cavalier lovers in here! Since I don't want to pay $2700 to a breeder, and pet stores are a no no, could anyone recommend where to find a cavalier rescue? I am in NJ.

Thanks so much!

 

[aaarcher86]

Please get a girl and name her ElizabethTaylor.

 

[mefordis]

Please get a girl and name her ElizabethTaylor.

That's funny! We are compiling a long list of names - I'll add it! BTW - you have a couple of dogs and seem to go away a couple times a year. Do you have someone watch your dogs or do you put them in a kennel? Interested in hearing your solution for that. Thx!

 

[Laura66]

Start with googling the national and state ckcs clubs. They do list breeders. Start googling breeders near you - if they are members of the cavalier clubs they are usually legit. There is a rescue website that has dogs available from all states. Start calling breeders and talking to them. They should know other breeders in the area to refer you to if they don't have pups or litters planned. A good breeder is going to be interviewing you too! Not all breeders are charging that much.
Unless you get lucky - you're gonna have to wait a while and do your research to get one!

 

[aaarcher86]

That's funny! We are compiling a long list of names - I'll add it! BTW - you have a couple of dogs and seem to go away a couple times a year. Do you have someone watch your dogs or do you put them in a kennel? Interested in hearing your solution for that. Thx!

Kind of a combo.

If we don't take the kids with us, whoever watches the kids watches the dogs too.

I prefer my in laws watching the dogs at their house when we leave with the kids whenever possible.

We've had our blue heeler down at Best Friends in Disney and she did fine. Our shepherd has gone to a kennel around us for a few days. If we kennel I always get them in a room with a bed and tv and make sure they get 3+ play breaks a day. I just try to keep them busy and in a big room so it feels less like a cage of sadness.

My friend will also watch them if I ask but I haven't gone that route since she lives a few hours away.

 

[Laura66]

If you're willing to travel I know 1 breeder who has 1 puppy of a litter available if you're not picky about color or sex! If we don't take it!

 

[mefordis]

Laura, when is it available?? You are in Ohio, right? M or F? Doens't matter, just curious! Thanks!

 

[mefordis]

Kind of a combo.

If we don't take the kids with us, whoever watches the kids watches the dogs too.

I prefer my in laws watching the dogs at their house when we leave with the kids whenever possible.

We've had our blue heeler down at Best Friends in Disney and she did fine. Our shepherd has gone to a kennel around us for a few days. If we kennel I always get them in a room with a bed and tv and make sure they get 3+ play breaks a day. I just try to keep them busy and in a big room so it feels less like a cage of sadness.

My friend will also watch them if I ask but I haven't gone that route since she lives a few hours away.

Excellent! Thank you!

 

[mjkacmom]

Keep in mind, that if you don't go through a reputable breeder, you might not get the characteristics that attract you to this breed. Any dog you find from a rescue or pet store will most likely be a badly bred dog. When we decided to get a dog, I had a list of characteristics I wanted (small/medium, short hair, housebroken, crate trained, friendly, not dominant, not hyper) and found the perfect rescue. Breed didn't matter, the rest did.

 

[Laura66]

Laura, when is it available?? You are in Ohio, right? M or F? Doens't matter, just curious! Thanks!

She sent me a pic. Looks like 1 black and tan and the rest look like rubies. They'll be ready to go in 8 weeks. I'm super interested but my husband really prefers to get a Blenheim since that's what we have.
Text me and I'll send you the pic!

 

[Anastasi]

The one I held in the pet store did shed all over me. I hear if you brush them a lot they shed less.

Please do not buy a Charley from a pet shop. Heed the warnings here and go to a very good breeder who is serious about correcting the heart problems in the breed. Our puppy came from such a breeder. They have been in the breed forever and work very hard at screening for heart problems and only breeding to help improve the breed.

A puppy from a petshop is from a puppy mill or a backyard breeder. Buying this kind of puppy will increase your chances by magnitudes that you will be bankrolling a very good life for your vet over the next 8-10 years.

 

[wvdisneyfamily]

Great dogs.

 

[havaneselover]

Keep in mind, that if you don't go through a reputable breeder, you might not get the characteristics that attract you to this breed. Any dog you find from a rescue or pet store will most likely be a badly bred dog. When we decided to get a dog, I had a list of characteristics I wanted (small/medium, short hair, housebroken, crate trained, friendly, not dominant, not hyper) and found the perfect rescue. Breed didn't matter, the rest did.

I totally agree. Dogs that end up at rescues are likely from puppy mills or pet shops or not purebreds. When you buy a dog like a Cavalier from a very reputable breeder, you are usually screened and if you're willing to make that type of financial commitment, it's unlikely the dog ends up with a rescue organization. I know the contract I signed when I bought my Havanese specified that she be returned to them if I couldn't keep her (of course that's fairly unenforceable). When we were considering a Coton de Tulear, one breeder insisted on home visits after the dog was placed. A good breeder loves their puppies so much they are selective about who they sell them to.

IMO, a rescue Cavalier is far more likely to have major health problems than one from a top breeder. And as others have mentioned, an unhealthy Cavalier can be very expensive dog. I'm pretty sure our work Cavalier has had over $4,000 in vet bills over the past three years.

 

[louey]

Thank you so much for your responses. A lot of cavalier lovers in here! Since I don't want to pay $2700 to a breeder, and pet stores are a no no, could anyone recommend where to find a cavalier rescue? I am in NJ.

Thanks so much!

We adopted our Cavalier in 2006 from www.hua.org they are located in Nebraska but they do long distance adoptions we are in Delaware. We had her flown into Philly, not too expensive either. She was a puppymill rescue and she was two when we got her. This rescue does alot of puppymill rescues all different breeds. She is the sweetest dog ever, Cavaliers never stop wagging their tails, she loves her meals and that is the only time she barks. Sierra does have a heart murmur and snores like a grown man most of the time when she is sleeping zzzzz. Cavaliers are an Awesome family dog.

 

[Laura66]

Be careful too - any reputable breeder will not place these puppies until they are 10 -12 weeks old!

 

[Anastasi]

A reputable breeder would also never surrender a puppy to a rescue to find a home. If it is a puppy the breeder does not want in its breeding program, it is classified as a pet puppy and sold as such. It doesn't make the screenings for good homes any different. A reputable breeder places all of its puppies in good homes, both pet and show puppies.

 

[havaneselover]

A reputable breeder would also never surrender a puppy to a rescue to find a home. If it is a puppy the breeder does not want in its breeding program, it is classified as a pet puppy and sold as such. It doesn't make the screenings for good homes any different. A reputable breeder places all of its puppies in good homes, both pet and show puppies.

Where did you read someone suggesting a reputable breeder would send a puppy to a rescue?

 

[mjkacmom]

I've had my Cavalier for a week and couldn't be more in love. Even at seven weeks, she has a very developed personality. I second the above comments about snuggling. Belle is definitely a lap dog...although, she is vey playful. PM me with questions.

Why did anyone sell you a 7 week old puppy?

 

[Laura66]

Why did anyone sell you a 7 week old puppy?

I don't mean to pile up on you - but honestly. No one who cares anything about a puppy and its mother would release any puppy before 8 weeks at the earliest. It's just too young.